


A Little Extra Cash

by Anonymous_Ajax_Junior



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, High School, Homophobic Language, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Minor Injuries, Mostly Link though, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Multiple, Period-Typical Homophobia, Self-Discovery, Slow Burn, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, Swearing, Tags May Change
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-14
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-05-24 05:19:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14948307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anonymous_Ajax_Junior/pseuds/Anonymous_Ajax_Junior
Summary: Link's a paperboy, and Rhett just might be the prettiest boy he's ever had to deliver to, even though he's not supposed to think that.





	1. Attraction After Accident

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NoctoClaw](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoctoClaw/gifts).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After mistakenly agreeing to do an additional paper route on the opposite side of town, Link encounters a rather tall blond boy.

Buies Creek was a small town, for the entire area there were only 7 paper boys, and unfortunately, Link was one of them.

He didn't think the job would be so bad, the company really sells it to you;you get payed, you gain responsibility...he didn't care for the last one much, but he needed the cash. Link always had the question of whether the money was truly worth it in the back of his mind, especially on days when the weather was particularly hot, or when people would complain about delivery time, but as a 14 year old who didn't like babysitting, what else was he gonna do for money?

On this day however, he was especially upset about his job as a paper boy. 

The company had called his house and asked if he could deliver for another route in addition to his own. Apparently one of the other boys were on vacation and they needed a replacement for 4 weeks. Link agreed of course, he'd be getting extra cash, and apparently the route was just under the same size as his actual one, so why wouldn't he? What he failed to realize at the time though, was that it was on the complete _opposite_ side of town.

And so, there he was, dragging his heavy cart of papers to the opposite side of Buies Creek, in the burning North Carolina sun, for an extra ten dollars.

The street was mostly calm when he got there, nobody asking about the other paperboy or sitting outside on their porch, the poor weather seemed to be keeping everyone inside. Naturally they had hot days living in the south and all, but it was _truly_ unbearable on that particular afternoon, with no wind, and no clouds to relieve any of the heat. Link approached yet another empty house, sweat glued to his forehead when he heard the sound of a ball repeatedly hitting the ground. _Who in the hell would wanna play sports in this heat?_

He looked a couple houses ahead and found himself frozen on one the hottest days of the year. Ahead of him was a taller boy around his age playing basketball in front of his house. His light hair and long body were covered in a light sheen of sweat as he moved up and down his driveway, skillfully dribbling and shooting a basketball into a net above his garage door. Link was in awe, this was the most attractive boy he'd ever seen, and he didn't even like boys, right? _Gross._  Link pushed back the intrusive thoughts; so what if this was the most attractive person he'd ever seen? That didn't mean anything.

Link leaned against his cart as he admired the tall boy. How had he never seen him before? All of the kids in Buies Creek went to the same school, he'd seen every kid who lived here at least twice, so how hadn't he encountered him before? His thoughts were interrupted as he faintly realized that he still had a job to do and that if he stayed in the sun much longer he'd probably end up with burns just because of some boy. A pretty boy, but a boy nonetheless.

Link dropped a newspaper near the end of the driveway he was standing on and continued onto the next house. On any other occasion he would leave it in the mailbox, but he was trying to save time, after all, he still had his _own_ route to do. As he dropped another paper on the house right next to the boy's, he paused again, realizing with great dread that he'd have to actually _talk_ to this boy. He couldn't just leave the paper on the driveway where he was playing wordlessly, that would be unprofessional. He was going to have to actually hand it to the boy that had made him completely stop in his tracks with just his appearance no less than two minutes ago.

Link walked up to his house slowly, his entire body filled to the brim with nervousness as he got closer and closer. When he found himself no more than ten feet away from the boy still moving up and down his driveway and paying him no mind, he opened his mouth to speak. "Excuse m-"

Link was cut off by a ball hitting him directly in the stomach and knocking him onto the ground into his cart.

Completely shocked by the turn of events, Link stayed planted to the almost burning pavement, completely still as he heard footsteps quickly approaching him. Link's eyes became wide after having to squint from the sun as a shadow appeared above him. As Link began to regather himself he realized he was holding a ball in his hands instead of newspaper, and that he had the blonde boy standing right over him.

The boy also realized that Link was holding the ball and let out an awkward chuckle. "Ha, nice catch."

The tall blonde took the ball from Link's arms and placed it on the pavement beside them before reaching for Link, pulling him onto his feet by his arms. "Are you okay? I didn't mean to hit you with the ball, it kind of just bounced off the backboard and came flying in this direction, I didn't even realize you were standing here."

Link didn't respond, his mind racing with too many thoughts to leave him with any brain power to speak. _My head hurts. God he's cuter up close. Fuck that hurt. Is my cart alright? He is **so**  cute. Did I really catch that ball? FUCK that hurt._

Still frozen in place, he realized he was staring at the boy that seemed to be getting a little concerned by his lack of response. He closed his mouth that had still been open in shock and swiftly mumbled out an 'It's fine' before returning to the ground to put all the papers back into the cart. The boy got onto his knees next to him and started to help, sloppily piling the papers in completely out of the order Link had them in. Link desperately wanted to tell him that he was putting them in wrong, but he was far too nervous and embarrassed to say anything at all.

As they stacked the remainder of the papers into the cart, they both unintentionally stood up no more than five inches away from one another causing Link too blush a little at their proximity. Link took a small step back from the blonde and grabbed one of the papers from his cart before shoving it into the boy's hands, continuing down the street without a single word.

~♥~

 _I could tell them I'm sick, or that I lost the papers? Dog attack, that has to work right? Paper boys get attacked by dogs all the time it wouldn't be that unbelievable right?_ Link was already dialing the newspaper company on the landline phone as he tried to come up with an excuse as to why he wasn't able to complete the second route. He had already done his own, the weather was much better than the last week and he'd sped through it pretty quickly, even had a few people compliment him on his delivery time as a contrast to their usual complaints. 

A woman picked up the other line. **_"Buies Creek News, how can I help you?"_**

Link swallowed the lump growing in his throat, calling management always made him nervous. "Hi, this is Charles Neal, I'm a deliverer for Buies Creek."

**_"Mhm, and what's your route number, dear?"_ **

_Shit, I should've planned this better, how could I forget my own route number?_ "Uhm..." Link paused as he tried to recall the number. "T2508."

**_"Okay Charles, what are you calling about?"_ **

Link began formulating his excuse, getting a slap on the wrist from the company was surely better than having to see that boy again after he'd embarrassed himself, all of this would turn out perfectly fine.

"Yeah, so I wasn-"

 _"Link!"_ Link heard his mom calling him from outside the house. _Shit, what's she doing home?_

Link could faintly hear the confusion in the voice of the woman on the phone. **_"I'm sorry?"_**

 _"Link come open the door!"_ His mom called again.

Link fumbled with the phone in his hands, rushing to get his words into the receiver before hanging up. "I'llcallyouback."

Link jogged to the front door, a little flushed from feeling almost as though he got caught. He swiftly opened the door to find his mom with a slightly irritated expression and two arms full of groceries. "Took you long enough."

Link faked a chuckle. "Sorry."

Link watched as his mom moved into the house to place the groceries on the kitchen counter and then turned her attention toward the neat piles of newspapers in the middle of their living room floor, prepped and ready to be delivered. Link's mom turned to him. "Link, shouldn't you have delivered those already?"

Link knew lying to his mom in that moment wouldn't get him anywhere, he'd have to deliver them no matter how much he pleaded. "Uh, yes bu-"

"Then go deliver it."

"But it's not even for my route, it's for another one, they asked me to do it."

"Link, they're your bosses, they don't _ask_ you anything, you have to do it."

"Bu-"

Sue cut him off again. "I don't wanna hear excuses, just get these papers out of my living room."

Link grumbled under his breath as he began to pack the papers into his cart. _Well that went great._

 

~♥~

 

What was that feeling he felt when doing this last week? Oh yeah, dread. Link wasn't even near the boy's house, from where he was he couldn't even _see_ it, he'd literally just reached the beginning of the street and he was feeling anxious. The weather was back to a more bearable temperature in comparison to the last week, but that barely built his confidence in the situation besides assuring him that he probably wouldn't die from some form of heat stroke.

Link made his way down the street, taking his sweet time at all the houses preceding the boy's as he walked all the way up to the doors, carefully putting the paper in the mailbox, and slowly making his way back down to the side of road where he kept his cart. Link practically jumped at any opportunity to speak to someone who was outside their house, cheerfully making conversation about how nice the weather was in effort to prolong the walk between where he was in the moment, and the boy's house. He didn't even know if the boy would be outside playing basketball again, hell he didn't even know if he _lived_ in Buies Creek, maybe that's why he'd never encountered him. _Fuck_. It dawned on the dark haired boy that he might be wasting his time in trying to avoid the blond, if he'd never seen him before that was probably the reason why, the boy didn't live there, he was _visiting_ someone.

Just as Link started to realize just how stupid his paranoia was he heard the familiar sound of a basketball hitting pavement a few houses ahead of him. _Jesus Christ_. He looked up and found himself staring at the same pretty blond boy he'd embarrassingly met the week before, still skillfully playing basketball on his driveway. Link took a deep breath as he turned back to his cart, wasting no time in grabbing 3 more papers and delivering to the last few houses before the boy's. He was gonna suck it up, hand it to him, and keep going. How hard could it be? Like, he wasn't even really that cute. _Yes he is._ Whatever, Link was a man and he knew more then well enough to not let some random stranger distract him from his work.

Link walked up to the blond boy's house with a look of determination on his face, loudly clearing his throat instead of using the polite approach that ended up with his ass on the pavement the week before. The taller boy who had been fiddling with some sort of cooler instead of playing basketball when Link approached turned around with two bottles of water in his hands before walking closer to him, offering them to Link with a smile. "Here."

Link was caught off guard and just stood there staring up at the boy with an unintentionally confused look on his face. The boy picked up on Link's confusion and decided to begin explaining. "I noticed last week when my ball knocked you and your cart over that you didn't have any water with you and I assumed you wouldn't have any this time either so...I got you some."

Link continued looking at him in confusion. _Is he serious? That- that's so nice._

The boy continued, "I'm really sorry about that by the way, I was hoping that this week I could help you finish delivering the rest of your papers, to, y'know, to make up for it."

Link's face changed from confusion to awe. _Who is this kid? He's great._

The blond started to fumble with the bottles in his hands as he became a little uncomfortable with Link's lack of response. "Of course, you don't have to let me, you can just have the wate-" The boy paused when he saw a wide smile grow on Link's face. "Actually, I'd love the help."

The boy replicated the smile as Link took the bottles from his hands and turned around to put them in his cart. Link turned back, still with a wide toothy grin on his round face as he spoke, "So, what's your name?"

It felt as though his nervousness simultaneously grew and shrank as he began to realize how nice of a boy this blond was. On the one hand, he was a great guy who'd managed to make Link feel comfortable while he delivered on the unfamiliar route, but on the other hand, well, he was great! He probably thought Link was just some weird kid who stares a lot, delivers newspaper, and wasn't even smart enough to pack water when doing so. _Well, that's not **wrong**._

Link was pulled out his stream of self-deprecating thoughts as he heard the boy's response above him, the same confidence when he'd first offered Link the water returning to his voice. "I'm Rhett."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do y'allst think of this so far? I hope it's good because I've already written the second chapter.


	2. Second Chance at a First Impression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rhett was a nice kid, but Link couldn't like him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This wasn't supposed to have multiple chapters, but hey, I wasn't supposed to graduate kindergarten, shit happens.

Link stuck his hand out to the taller boy, aiming for a handshake before snatching his hand back, the confidence he'd just shown draining from his body as he instantly regretted it. _Wait, is that too formal?_ Link tossed the idea around in his head, did it matter? They probably wouldn't become friends if Rhett didn't actually live in the area, plus Rhett probably already thought he was stuck-up from how he'd left him last week so what difference would it make?

Link didn't get to make a decision whether he wanted to offer Rhett a handshake or not before he felt the taller boy grab his hand to finish the action himself. Still holding Link's smaller hand in his own, he spoke, "And your name is?"

Link stared down at where their hands were connected and felt a warmth settle on his cheeks, he looked up at Rhett and answered a little quietly out of embarrassment. "I'm Link."

Rhett dropped Link's hand and motioned to his cart behind him, "So Link, how do we do this?"

Link cleared his throat and stepped behind his cart. "Yes, right, okay."

Rhett smiled all the while waiting for Link to explain what to do. Link stuttered and mumbled as he tried to explain the task at hand. "Yeah, so basically- uhm, what you'r- we're gonna do, uhm, so what we're gonna do-" Rhett tried to hide his amusement by placing his hand over his smile, but couldn't stop the few chuckles that escaped his lips.

Link's eyes shot up toward him, his eyes wide for a brief moment before returning back to their normal state. "Uh...is something funny?"

Rhett started laughing openly at the display in front of him, almost dramatically with the sheer volume of it as Link stood frozen and confused. Rhett's laughter began to die down, allowing him to speak. "I'm sorry, I'm just, you're being kinda cute, all nervous and stuttering 'n crap."

And then Link's eyes were twice as wide as they were before. "...What?"

Rhett was quick to correct himself, almost as nervous as Link was as his words quickly flew out of his mouth. "I mean, not like cute, like pretty girl cute, I mean like, like puppy? cute, uhm, I- didn't mean to laugh, I'm-" Rhett stopped himself before he could make matters worse. "Why don't you finish telling me about what we're gonna do."

Link's face was redder than ever and he wasn't all too satisfied with being compared with a puppy by someone he'd just recently developed a crush- _No, not a crush, this isn't a crush, I just think he's cool, no average, he's just normal...ish._ Nevertheless Link didn't like being called a puppy, by _anyone_ , especially not by completely normal boys. With that in mind Link decided to straighten himself out and focus on what he'd came all this way to do; deliver paper. This completely normal boy was offering to help him and he was just standing around and barely speaking 3 words before messing up what he was going to say.

Link took a deep breath and restarted his instructions all over again. "Right, well, anyway, what I was trying to say before you interrupted me was that we're gonna deliver the rest of these papers all the way 'til we reach the end of the street, I'll do one house and then you do the house in front of me, then you'll come back, grab another paper, skip a house so I can do it, then repeat, okay?"

Rhett had been nodding along to Link's instructions the entire time, drawn to the confidence that Link began showing so suddenly. "Gotcha."

Link continued, "You have to put them in their mailbox, if they don't have one, put it on the porch, if there's someone in front of the house, skip it, I'll deal with it, got it?" 

Rhett wasn't paying attention, not really, he was holding onto the way the words came out Link's mouth more than what the words actually were, far too focused on the boy's cheeks, his lips- _Nope, that's weird, pay attention McLaughlin._ Rhett heard Link asking for more confirmation that Rhett was listening below him, and although in truth the blond didn't know what he was supposed to be listening to besides the fact that it was some form of 'newspaper delivery directing', he confirmed that he knew what they were doing. How complicated could it be anyway?

 

~♥~

 

Link had delivered to one singular house before he'd looked up and saw Rhett lazily dropping papers onto the driveways of multiple properties ahead of him then walking back toward him to get more. When the blond was in front of him about to reach into the cart to retrieve more Link stopped him by lightly grabbing Rhett's forearm, quickly letting go so as to not have to be in contact with the blond any longer than needed. The taller boy stopped and stood up straight in front of Link, a tint of red visible on his cheeks. "Yeah?"

"Rhett, were you actually listening to anything I said?"

The tint deepened a few shades. "No..."

Link let out a sigh as he looked down into his cart, he could get away with leaving the papers on the driveway for one more week right? It wouldn't do too much harm. Link raised his eyes back up to the blond who seemed like he was still a little embarrassed from being confronted, it was sorta cute.  _In like a puppy dog kinda way._ "It's fine, let's just keep going alright?"

Rhett's body released tension that neither of them had realized he was holding, he smiled down at the shorter boy. "Alright."

 

~♥~

 

The two of them finished in wicked time, way faster than when Link would just do it himself, he felt nice knowing that he'd still have a good amount of daylight left even after the long walk home. The two boys walked back in the direction of Rhett's house in silence, it was a little awkward. He appreciated that Rhett had offered to help him out, but in truth he barely knew anything about him, he didn't know what to say or what to talk about. Link had never been good with new people, always the awkward silent kid in the class, but he knew he needed to say something, this boy that he'd only met the last week for a few short moments had just taken the time out of his afternoon to help him with his job with absolutely no promise of reward.

Link turned his head upward toward the boy walking next to him, he looked similar to the way he did when Link had first saw him the week before, sweat glistening on his face as a result of walking around in the hot sun even if for only a short time. From the closer proximity Link as able to make out more of the features that he couldn't when he was further away or when he was trying to avoid his gaze for fear of judgement from the taller boy, or at least what he told himself was a fear of judgement. He remembered when he'd had another chance to admire the boy's face the week before when the blond had been standing above him, he realized that that moment was similar to this one, the close proximity leading to him believing Rhett was far more attractive up close. When his brain was distracted by pain from being hit he'd only acknowledged that he was cuter, not truly catching the features that made him so. At this moment he was able to, and to Link Rhett was attractive in an almost unconventional way. His stature was oddly tall and skinny, he had a small chin and his eyes bugged out a little more than the average person, but they had a beautiful colour, one that Link couldn't really place but liked all the same. He couldn't explain his attraction to the boy if he wanted to, not that he'd ever dream of it, that kind of attraction was gross and he knew it, but some how he also knew he couldn't stop it. Nevertheless, that wouldn't stop him from trying.

Link turned his face back toward the road, his body a little looser and lazier as he continued toward the end of the street that would bring him closer to his house. There was a tinge of sadness to his person that would go easily undetected to the average eye, even Link was having a hard time deciphering his emotions in the moment. He shouldn't feel upset that it wasn't okay for him to be attracted to Rhett, he'd get over it, he'd just, stop, what else was he to do?

Link was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of Rhett's voice above him. "Hey Link?"

Link lifted his head back up toward the blond, his voice was softer than when he'd tried to instruct him earlier, his nervousness replaced by torment that left no distinguishable feature in his voice. "Yeah?"

There was a pause before Rhett continued. "Do you wanna come to my house?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is pretty short, but hey, I hope you all liked it anyway Thank you all for the support so far, it's been pretty awesome, 'n yeah, the next chapter is ready and will be coming out next week Saturday.


	3. Blunder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The unconventionality of their friendship has to start somewhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing chapters of consistent lengths? Never heard of her.

Link felt his breath catch in his throat. Was he joking? Why would he want Link at his house when Link wasn't even all that great? They'd barely spoken the entire time, and if it weren't for the pause that Rhett had taken before asking, Link would think that the proposal was completely impulsive, almost as impulsive as Link's decision to say 'Yes.'

They were only a few properties away from Rhett's house when Link had agreed, and it seemed as though the air between the two boys lightened a little, a small level of professionalism removed and replaced by the excitement of having the chance to get to know someone new. Even Link was excited, dragging his empty cart behind him while trying to conceal his smile, Rhett was doing the same.

As they arrived on Rhett's driveway Rhett began patting down his pockets to try and find his house keys, he'd been home alone before offering to help Link earlier and thought it best to keep the door locked even if he was going to be staying on the same street. After patting both his front and back pockets down more than twice, Rhett felt his mood shift to mild annoyance;he'd lost his keys. "Crap."

Link who'd been fiddling with his cart behind Rhett prior to hearing him curse looked up, concern falling over his face. "Something wrong?"

Rhett turned around to face Link, a little too upset over the situation to feel embarrassed about Link being there to witness it. He tried to smile through his annoyance. "Nope, I was just thinking about how much more fun it would be to stay out here and play basketball rather than go inside. 

Link chuckled, he hadn't known Rhett for that long but he could see through his lie instantly. "D'you lose your keys?"

Rhett smile dropped a little bit. "Yup."

Link smiled, he felt a little disappointed that they wouldn't have the luxury of any A/C, but he still intended to hang out with Rhett, inevitable uneven tan be damned. "Well then I guess you better get prepared to lose." Link walked away from Rhett's doorway, smiling as he made his way down the porch steps toward Rhett's make-do basketball court. Rhett was close behind, smiling with relief after Link hadn't immediately decided to go home when he found out that Rhett had lost his keys.

Rhett retrieved his ball from behind the cooler he'd stored Link's water in, coming back up and dribbling it a couple times before swiftly passing it to Link. Link just barely caught it and he could see Rhett trying to contain his laughter, the boy's cheeks going perfectly round before he whipped his head backward to hide his face. Link knew what he was trying to do, he'd done it a million times before. Link looked down to dribble the ball before looking back up at the blond. "That was for comedic effect."

Rhett puffed out a chuckle, full smile on his face. "Of course it was."

After checking the ball, Link had ended up with it, he looked up with intentions of shooting the ball into the net without moving around first, before he felt a hand swiping right between his own, and stealing it from him. Link looked up at Rhett with almost fear in his eyes, how had me moved that fast? How'd he get it so easily? Link had looked up for no more than two seconds. Rhett chuckled while dribbling the ball before mumbling something under his breath " _I guess I'd better get prepared to lose._ "

Link feigned an offended look at the blond, smiling brightly as he spoke. "Oh I'm definitely gonna beat you for that."

Rhett smirked at the raven haired boy before looking up and shooting the basketball into the net, getting it in gracefully without touching the rim or backboard while Link tried to hide his awe. "I'd like to see you try."

 

~♥~

 

And try Link did, he _definitely_ tried, but Rhett was just too fast, too tall, and far more experienced in the sport. Link had brought up how unfair the nature of their competition was given all of Rhett's advantages, making up amazing excuses at every failed shot, " _I'm more of a soccer guy." , "The sun got in my eye._ " Link used every excuse he had, and as amused as Rhett was by all of them, he still refused to give any mercy to his opponent, this was a game after all.

After yet another 2-pointer scored from Rhett, Link sighed dramatically. "You know, you could at least _pretend_ you're not good at this instead of beating me by like 20 points, if I win I might even give you a chance at being my friend."

Rhett laughed. "What an offer."

Link chuckled back a little. "It's all I've got."

Rhett passed the ball to Link. "Here, you if make one in I'll say you have 26 points and you win." 

Link scoffed at the suggestion, his face visibly amused as he looked toward Rhett standing a few feet away. Link looked down at the ball in his hands then back up at the taller boy. "Okay."

Rhett smiled, amused and a little happy that Link had agreed to take the offer. Link liked it, he liked Rhett's smile, the way Rhett smiled at him. _S'Probably no differently to how he smiles at others though, that's just the way he looks when he's happy._

Link took a step back with the ball, trying to line himself perfectly perpendicular to the net above him. When he was satisfied with his place he looked back over to Rhett. "I'd like to clarify that I could beat you without doing this, I've been letting you win so that your feelings don't hurt too bad."

Rhett chuckled, falling into the same mood as when Link was trying to explain delivering to him earlier: hearing Link but not really listening; much more happy to be in the presence of the potential new friend than to actually listen to what he had to say. Rhett watched as Link continued to prepare his shot, he was a good looking kid, but not in like a weird way, Rhett just liked his hair...and his smile...and his eyes. Rhett let a long breath out. _You can't do this again, McLaughlin._

Rhett refocused his thoughts toward the game, watching as Link began to raise his arms to take the shot. With his hands still in the air Link took another small step back, raising to his toes as the ball left his fingertips. Link used a little more power than probably necessary, thinking that having it go too far would be less embarrassing than if it were to fall short. The two boys watched as the ball flew into the back of the net, the excessive amount of power used causing it to bounce right off the back and shoot right back toward Link.

Link gasped as he saw the ball coming at him, he swiftly turned around to run away and dodge the ball before he felt it smack him directly in the back of his head. Completely disoriented from the impact he began falling forward, directly toward the pavement. Rhett watched in shock as it all happened, and in an instant he was in front of Link, his long legs carrying him to the smaller boy just in time to catch him before he could hit the pavement. Although Link was pretty light, the force with which he fell into Rhett caused the blond to stumble a little, leading to him to falling back into a sitting position, hitting the ground with Link still in his arms.

Rhett barely acknowledged the pain in his backside, far too concerned with the raven-haired boy laying limply on top of him with his face in his chest. On any other occasion Rhett would be blushing, maybe uncomfortable and embarrassed, but his focus wouldn't shift from the fear that his new friend was hurt. Rhett took in a quick breath to replace the air that had been knocked out of him, exhaling his words above Link's head. "Link, are you okay?!"

The only response he got was a groan. Link's knees were bent beneath him, the way he was positioned it would look like he were praying if it weren't for Rhett cradling his head in his hands. Rhett didn't remember when or how his hands had gotten there with his fingers tangled in the hair on the back of Link's head, but he'd already moved them to the boy's arms before he could dwell on it. He lifted Link, holding him up by the shoulders. The concern was still present on his face as he observed Link's expression, Link's face was contorted in pain, his eyes were closed and the small boy was still groaning in agony. Rhett spoke again, quieter this time so as to not startle him. "Link? Can you hear me? Are you okay?"

Link squinted his eyes open, taking in the concerned look on Rhett's face, his head hurt like the devil, but to Link it seemed like it couldn't be nearly as bad as the pain he could read in Rhett's face. For a moment his mind was taken over by confusion instead of torment. _Why does he care so much?_  

Link removed himself from in front a Rhett, not realizing how the boy was holding him or inferring as to how he'd gotten there. He stood up, still squinting his eyes and stumbling a little as he tried to find his footing. He rubbed the back of his head as he spoke, his voice still slightly strained. "Yeah 'm fine."

Rhett was on his feet in front of him, he felt better that Link was conscious and able to move around, but the way he was a little unbalanced concerned him, Rhett placed his hands lightly on the shorter boy's shoulders. "You should sit down, man, wait here."

Link didn't debate it, in truth he'd only stood up to make Rhett think he was more okay than he actually was, his head hurt like a bitch, but he couldn't stand the look on Rhett's face. _Why do **I** care so much?_

Link sat back down on Rhett's driveway as the blond walked away toward the cooler. Rhett wanted to get another water bottle, maybe use it as a make-do ice pack since he didn't have any real ones in it. As he opened the cooler a shimmer of silver caught his attention; his keys. He grabbed them and rushed back over to Link, he had real ice packs in the house that Link could use, and Link would also be able to lie down, he would be okay. He squatted down in front of him. "Can you walk?"

Rhett knew he was probably being dramatic, but he really didn't know, he'd never been in a situation like this, never been the only person around when someone hit their head really bad, all he knew was that Link could have a concussion or some other serious problem, so telling him to "walk it off" didn't seem like the right way to go in terms of medical aid. Link tried to stand up again, he momentarily stumbled but found his footing and began following Rhett to his front door. Link wanted to question why they were going back seeing as Rhett had lost his keys earlier, but his mind was too far gone to care to try and form any words.

Link's head was down, still rubbing at the back of it to try and sooth the pain, he heard Rhett fumbling with the door before hearing it open. Rhett guided Link into the house and gestured for him to sit down on a couch in the middle of the room. "Stay here."

Rhett returned with an ice pack, handing it to Link before sitting down next to him. Link leaned back on the couch, sighing in relief at finally being free from the heat outside, and from having something to sooth the pain in his head. His eyes were hooded as he gave Rhett a small smile. "Thanks."

Rhett decided to sit in silence, Link's head hurt and he figured that he wouldn't feel too up to talking, as such Rhett settled for just quietly observing the boy, even with the pained look on his face Rhett found him attractive...in a platonic way, in a completely apathetic way, he didn't care...like at all, it was just a fact that Link was attractive, it meant nothing. Rhett took a deep breath, scooting away from Link a little bit and lying back, no longer staring at the dark-haired boy.

The two sat in near complete silence, the only noise being the sound of their breaths and Link shifting the ice-pack on his head ever so often. Link broke the silence. "You just gonna watch me the whole time?"

Rhett was caught off guard, he wasn't watching Link, he'd stopped hadn't he? Rhett looked down at his legs and realized that at some point he'd shifted his body and was in fact, facing and watching Link. Link shifted his head to look at Rhett, seeing his mouth opening and shutting with no sound coming out. Link assumed he was trying to come up with something to say.

Link chuckled, the hit to the head must've been a confidence booster. "It's okay."

Rhett swallowed the lump that had started building in his throat. "I'm sorry."

Link put the ice pack down on a small table next to the couch, he rubbed his head where it had hurt, it was fine for the moment, he knew it'd probably start hurting again later but he was grateful for the relief anyway. He sat up properly, turning his body toward Rhett who was sitting on the opposite side of the couch, an entire seat away. Somehow his eyes seemed brighter than when they were outside in the sun. "Thank you Rhett."

Rhett smiled back, he wasn't embarrassed, no blush rushed to his cheeks, he just felt happy that Link was okay, he wasn't sure why he was so happy about it, he'd never been so enthusiastic about this sorta thing with any of his other friends, but he didn't dwell on it, he wasn't doing any harm. "No problem, just- try to catch the ball next time."

Link groaned before a smile formed on his face. "Ugh, that was pretty stupid huh?"

Rhett chuckled. "Ha, no kidding, thought I was gonna have to drag you to an ER in your cart."

Link laughed, his head hurt a little from the movement of tossing his head forward, but he didn't care. "That would've been hilarious."

"Maybe for you, I'd probably knock out the way you did by the time we got there.

Link started laughing again, he'd knocked out? He hadn't realized. "I knocked out? Oh gosh."

Rhett smiled "Yeah, for a few seconds, it was pretty bad."

Link groaned. "If I ever try to go near a basketball again, punch me, it would hurt way less."

Rhett laughed. "Ha, I don't doubt that."

Link kept speaking, a smile still plastered on his face. "Plus then your pride wouldn't be hurt from me beating you again like I obviously did today."

Rhett scoffed in amusement. "Of course."

The two boys continued talking, losing track of the time as they babbled about any topic that came to mind, learning more about each other as they subconsciously moved closer and closer to each other on the large couch, apparently Link had been delivering paper since 7th grade, and Rhett was in an actual basketball league.

Rhett's smile weakened. "-or at least, I was, in Georgia."

Link raised one of his eyebrows in confusion. "Geogia?"

Rhett continued. "Yeah, I used to live there with my parents but they sent me to live here."

Link spoke again, "Who do you live with now?"

"My grandparents."

Link nodded in understanding and then confusion came back to him. "Why?"

Rhett seemed to freeze, suddenly uncomfortable as his eyes began shifting around Link's face, not focusing on any particular place. "I uhm...I don't wanna talk about it."

Link was confused by Rhett's discomfort with the question. What had happened? Did Rhett do something? Was it his parents? Link wanted to know but he didn't want to press on, prioritizing the comfort of his new friend over his curiosity. Link's voice quieted, matching Rhett's mood shift. "I'm sorry."

Rhett gave Link a quick half smile, just then realizing that he and Link were inches away from each other, his words were quiet and breathy, almost whispering. "It's okay."

Link too realized their proximity, his face gaining a tint of pink for a reason unknown to him, maybe it was bashfulness, he really _didn't_ know, but he didn't try to hide it this time, and he didn't make an effort to move. He didn't see Rhett move away either, but Link noticed that his eyes stopped jumping around, instead they focused on his own, again Rhett was staring at him, but this time Link was staring back. The two of them were frozen and surrounded by silence, it felt like a staring contest, waiting for the other to move or to blink, Rhett's house dissipated around them and Link felt like he could only see his face;his oh so pretty face that he didn't like liking.

Finally one of them moved; Rhett. The blond's eyes swiftly shifted down to Link's lips, almost completely unnoticeable by the brunette before he sighed and moved back a little, he raised his hand and lightly held the side of Link's face momentarily, he brushed his thumb under Link's eye then moved his hand back to where it had been in front of him on the couch, just barely grazing Link's shin. He spoke softly. "Eyelash."

Link's face felt like it was burning where Rhett had touched him, his body felt light and heavy at the same time, he knew his cheeks were red and he could feel his shin tingling where Rhett was just hardly touching him. Link felt like he was floating in bliss, inexplicably happy until suddenly, Link began to panic. Why was he reacting this way? Why couldn't he look away from his new friend's eyes? Why did he feel like he couldn't breathe? All at once Link became aware of the situation, it wasn't right, he shouldn't be reacting like that. Rushed words fell out of Link's mouth as he began standing up. "I have to go."

 

~♥~

 

Link walked home as fast as he could without breaking into a run, scared, confused. Why had he reacted like that? Why did he feel the need to leave so suddenly? Why was he so scared? What _happened_? He fumbled with his keys in the door, it was nearly sunset when he was finally back home, he didn't acknowledge his mom at all as he went straight to his room, he knew she'd end up saying something about him being disrespectful later but he didn't care, he needed to be alone, he needed to be back in familiar territory, back in his room.

He tossed himself onto his bed, it wasn't late but somehow Link felt exhausted, felt like all the energy he had in his body had been drained and like he couldn't leave his bed if he tried. Link rolled around to get himself comfortable, hugging his pillow and letting his eyes fall shut, flashes of Rhett played in his mind and Link felt a wetness build on his eyes, ashamed of the impact the blond was having on him. He didn't understand, what was happening to him? He tried to sleep to make the images of the taller boy that tormented his consciousness go away, but as he felt them starting to fade Link began to fear that they might return in his dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I found out the day before I started writing this chapter that Rhett never met his grandparents so...yeah, there's some fiction writing for ya.
> 
> What do we think so far? What's up with Rhett? What's gonna happen to Link? Hmm...


	4. The Inevitable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So what now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while since I updated this so I advise that you all go reread last chapter, as well, whoops.)

The sound of an alarm blaring on the other side of the room forced Link awake with a startle, he reached to pull his pillow over his head to drown out the sound, but paused as he noticed the dry tear spots scattered around it. They crinkled the sheet in uneven patches and were much bigger than Link had expected them to be;they could pass off as drool, and when the realization had crossed Link's mind he thought that it might be less shameful if that's what they truly were. He barely remembered how he'd fallen asleep the day before; was barely able to recall his dreams as he became distracted by the pain in his head and, inexplicably, his chest. It hadn't hurt since when Rhett's ball had bounced into him over two weeks ago, but for some reason, that morning it did. Still, it felt different from the first time, not physically sore, but still...aching.

Link released his pillow from the light grasp he had it in, raising himself off of his twin bed and moving slowly to the other side of his bedroom to turn off the alarm. It was Friday and Link still had never felt more unexcited to go to school. On any other morning Link would hit the snooze button, whether he wanted to go to school or not, he always wanted extra sleep, but this time, he didn't, feeling it not worth the effort, feeling it necessary to do everything right, to not waste time, to get everything over with as quickly as possible. The odd mood shift made him efficient, Link liked that, but he still feared it;he couldn't live in this weird state forever, he felt...empty, he felt sad and apathetic and angry all at the same time, he felt completely on edge and he'd only just woken up.

He made his way downstairs to get ready for school, when he'd slept in in the past he hadn't had time for breakfast;he never ate in the mornings, but today, he had the time. His mom had already gone to work before he'd woken up, leaving him on his own to eat breakfast for the first time in months without her;they always ate together on the weekends. Link sat by himself, completely unable to enjoy his favourite cereal as he ate in silence. He let out a sigh before raising his spoon back up to his lips, holding it lightly and lazily. _This is going to be a long day._

 

~♥~

 

When Link arrived at school he'd been expecting that it would improve his mood, even if didn't feel like _physically_ being at the school. He'd expected that the few friends he'd somehow managed to make despite his generally shy attitude would make him feel better, but as he walked into his first class of the day, English, he realized his expectations would not become a reality.

Link's friend, Leslie, was at the desk beside him like he'd expected her to be, but a few seats ahead of them at another table sat the boy he'd fled from in fear only the day before. _Rhett_. Link felt his heart skip a beat, feeling like his fight or flight instincts were going off as he darted to his seat to get away from him. It was inevitable that Rhett would notice him at some point in the day if he was here- _Why **is** he here?_ -but Link still had complete intentions of prolonging that moment as much as he was physically capable of.

Leslie watched in a mix of amusement and concern as Link practically bolted to his desk beside her. The two of them had more or less "dated" for a short period in middle school, and after they broke up, and the awkwardness of the situation faded, they started becoming way better friends than they ever really were as romantic partners. Leslie liked Link for his amusing traits obviously, but he was also a great kid, and she cared for his well-being a lot. 

Link saw Leslie giving him a confused look out of the corner of his eye as he swiftly sat down, he hadn't realized it but he was beginning to hyperventilate, he was starting to make a scene. He noticed another student in the class that was usually even quieter than him watching him from the back, and his eyes shot to the front of the class to see if Rhett was doing the same, thankfully, he wasn't. Rhett seemed to already be making friends and chatting with the kids near his desk, Link felt a little ashamed as he remembered how he hadn't been able to do so himself on his first day even though he'd lived in Buies Creek his entire life and _already_ knew some of the other kids. Just as Link's mind began spiraling out of control again he felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder and his eyes came to focus on Leslie. As her mouth opened to speak he heard the door of the classroom shut from across the room.

Link's english teacher, Mr. Wilson, was a fairly tall man, probably one of the tallest in the entire school but it was balanced out with his weight, not very skinny, nor very large, perfectly proportionate to his stature. What was left of his hair was a light blond and his face was never clean shaven, to Link he'd always given off more of a science teacher vibe, kind of nerdy looking with glasses over his wrinkled eyes and everything, but he didn't really care, he was a decent teacher anyway, not the best, definitely not, but Link wouldn't blame his struggle in the class on him, he just wasn't that great in the subject.

As Mr.Wilson entered the classroom Link felt Leslie remove her hand from his shoulder, letting out some sort of frustrated huffing noise as she focused toward the front of the class. Leslie felt very strongly about doing well in school and would often prioritize it over her friends whether she wanted to or not, but with Link she tended to ease up a bit, they'd talk later, Link knew that.

Mr.Wilson stood in the front of the class in lieu of sitting at his desk immediately as he usually would when explaining things, and cleared his throat briefly. "Good morning class." A few tired mumbles in response followed, nobody bothered acting up in his class because he never entertained it, he'd just send them out immediately, so there was never a problem with students being rowdy.

Mr.Wilson chuckled "Please, conserve your excitement."

After a soft chuckle from Leslie alone, he continued. "Before we start our lesson today I'd like to introduce you all to a new student who's gonna be joining us for the rest of the term." He gestured to where Rhett was sitting near the front row of desks.

Link's eyes widened, that meant Rhett was gonna stand up, he was gonna look at everyone in the class, he was gonna see him. He laid his head down on his desk, putting his arms in front of him to block his face, begging, praying Mr.Wilson wouldn't tell him to sit up, and that Rhett wouldn't notice him. As Link heard Mr.Wilson tell Rhett to stand up in front of the class, he felt the urge to see the blonde's face more clearly, but he wouldn't raise his head, he couldn't look at him, it would be too much.

Link heard the sound of a chair moving and then his teacher continuing to speak. "Introduce yourself, young man."

The sound of Rhett's voice entered Link's ears, he'd never really focused on it prior to that moment, always too distracted by the boy's looks or some sort of pain, but he liked it, he liked it a lot. It didn't crack much in comparison to the other boy's his age, it was smooth, it was steady, and you could hear his emotions in it, it was expressive. Hearing Rhett's voice sounding so happy almost made him smile, but then he felt the same ache in his chest, and the feeling was gone, again replaced by the small boy's nervousness.

Link heard Rhett stop talking above him, he didn't know what he'd said, he was too busy focusing on the details of Rhett's voice to listen to the words that he was actually saying, but he didn't care, he'd already become acquainted with the boy;whether that was a good thing or not, he was no longer certain of.

He heard his teacher start speaking after Rhett. "Okay, now I want you all to introduce yourselves to Rhett as well, you only have to say your name, but if you wanna throw in something else, that's fine too, just make it quick. We'll start at the front and move our way to the bac-"

Link's nerves went off before his teacher could even finish speaking. _Fuckfuckfuck fUck, **FUCK** , he's gonna look over here. _Link tried to think of ways to get out of the situation, a series of ideas flowing through his mind:  _go to the bathroom_ , _pretend to have dropped something under the desk_ , _jump out the window_ , but unfortunately, none of them were really good options;he couldn't get out of this.

Link let out an audible sigh, it wasn't intentional, simply a result of his frustration, but consequently, he heard the student who'd been introducing themself pause. His head was still on his desk so he couldn't see the student, nor the rest of the class besides Leslie to his left and the kid behind her, but he could tell that everyone was staring at him. Link felt the hair on his body stand up as he heard his teacher's voice. "Well Mr.Neal, since you're clearly very interested in Michael's introduction, you can raise your head, and go next."

Link took in a deep breath. _Fuck_. He'd been caught. He slowly raised his head to see everyone looking at him like he'd expected, everyone except for Rhett and Michael who were still introducing themselves to one another. Link felt a brief moment of relief wash over him, he would be free from Rhett's gaze for just a few moments longer. As Michael finished his conversation with Rhett he saw the blond turn to the teacher, still not noticing Link. Mr.Wilson made a gesture toward Link, and the brunette watched powerlessly as Rhett's eyes followed the movement to Link's direction before stopping. Link stopped as well, his cover was blown and he felt frozen. Really seeing Rhett's face instead of the side of his head at the beginning of class and the short glimpses before he'd put his head down minutes ago sent Link's mind spiraling toward the day before;the way Rhett had held Link's face in his hand for just a moment, brushing his fingers on his cheek and making it burn, how he'd spoken so softly and made Link uncomfortably comfortable, how Link had fled in fear, how he gone to sleep with tears wetting his pillow; it was all hitting him again. Link felt like his cheeks were aflame as he looked into Rhett's eyes, once more he felt fear and shame, he desperately wanted his emotions to stop so he could just have a normal friendship with the boy, but he couldn't convince himself that he'd actually be able to suppress them. Link felt his body almost shaking as he tried to speak, the two boys had both been completely silent and he could sense the impatience and confusion of his classmates. His voice wasn't as loud as he'd tried to muster, barely over a mumble, but he couldn't change it anymore. "I'm Link...Neal."

Link watched as Rhett shakily nodded his head and tried to return back to his normal smile. It looked fake. "Nice to meet you."

 

~♥~

 

Link thought the period would never end, never had time moved so slowly in this class and it was unbearable. With every glance at Rhett Link felt more desperate to leave, more desperate to escape his conflicted feelings toward him, and, as expected, Link had given Rhett _quite_ a few glances. In the class Rhett was so active, asking questions and making jokes, he was so sociable and admirable, with every moment he wanted to talk to him more, but was held back by the fear of what the conversation would ensue after what happened the day before.

When the bell rang Link practically ran to the bathroom, intending to take full advantage of the three minute transition between every period. As he entered the bathroom he was surprised and relieved to see that it was empty, the only tenant leaving the same moment Link had entered. Link made his way over to the sink, breathing a little hard from how swiftly he'd brought himself to the room in the first place. He turned on the already cold water and splashed it on his face, rubbing his eyes and trying to slow down his breathing;he needed to calm down. As he finally began to feel his heart returning to its normal pace, he looked up into the mirror, his heart starting to race faster than it had before as he took in the image of Rhett entering the bathroom.

Link nearly hurt his neck as he ducked his head into the sink again as a weak attempt to hide his face. He heard the bathroom door swing closed as Rhett fully entered. He was practically drowning himself as he listened to the boy's even footsteps behind him until there was a hitch, and then a pause. Link stayed still, fearing the worst. "Link?"

 _Shit_. Link raised his head out of the sink, trying to wipe away the cold water that was trickling down his face, he saw Rhett standing behind him in the mirror, the almost ice-cold water keeping the heat from rising to his cheeks. Rhett's face looked confused and concerned, his eyebrows contorted in question, Link thought he would collapse in embarrassment. Rhett spoke again, "What are you doing?"

Link lifted his hands from where they were gripping the sink almost painfully hard, he turned around, face still a little damp as droplets fell from the tips of his hair. He made a gulp-like sound before he spoke, his head downcast. "Nothing."

Link heard Rhett take a step closer, there was obvious hesitation before he spoke again. "Are you okay?"

Link wanted to cry, of course this amazing kid was concerned even after Link had so rudely ditched him and pretended not to know him in class, of course he still cared when Link was being a piece of shit, of course he did. Shame and embarrassment coursed through Link's body, this stupid blond had been so nice to him in the few times they'd been around each other and Link was losing it, he was so stupid. Link's gaze was still cast downward, he couldn't look up at Rhett, he just couldn't. He heard Rhett taking more steps toward him until he saw his sneakers right in front of his own, he was so close.

Link heard Rhett start speaking again above him, slower and less rushed than he had before. "Link...are you okay?"

Link finally raised his head up toward the boy, his eyes wet but not yet crying, it could easily pass as irritation from the water, but he knew Rhett could tell it was tears from the way the small smile on his face from Link revealing his own turned back into concern. Link's breaths were short as he looked into the eyes of the blond standing tall above him. Link's mind was both empty and overworked as he made his worst decision of the day, rising to his toes and placing a short kiss on the corner of Rhett's mouth, his words were a whisper as he landed back on his heels. "I don't think so."

Before he could get a response Link was already out the door, the loud blare of the school bell reaching his ears as the door swung closed behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HmmmmMmm
> 
> (Sorry for not posting a chapter last week, I hope this makes up for it!)


	5. Continuous Conflictions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who knew so much could change in so little time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Warnings for this chapter: Homophobia & homophobic slurs used in correlation with Christianity and church.*  
> Sorry.

The rest of the school day was a blur of Link blissfully and carelessly moving around school, he didn't see Rhett for the remainder of the day because they apparently didn't share any other classes, and he was also nowhere to be found during Lunch. Leslie was confused by Link's mood change, he was almost dazed and although Link had his quirks and acted pretty oddly or unpredictably sometimes, she didn't know what to think, never had he seen him so...out of it before. She'd tried to start a conversation with him at lunch but every response she received was a shrug or a smirk with an exhale through the nose, Link was completely unreachable, and after some persistence, she eventually gave up trying to communicate with him entirely.

At the end of the day she'd decided to walk him home, authentically scared that her friend would somehow end up dead in a ditch on the way there if he wasn't supervised, but Link had declined the offer, finally using actual words to communicate as he told her that he'd be okay. She hadn't been completely convinced, but decided to leave it anyway, he wouldn't budge.

In truth, Link's blissful and dazed attitude wasn't really a result of happiness, in fact, it was mostly based out of pure fear; as far as Link was concerned, he'd just ruined his life, and the attitude was a result of being utterly clueless on what would happen next. On the outside Link seemed the happiest he'd ever been, but in actuality, he was so terrified he'd forgotten how to function as a normal human being.

 

~♥~

 

On Saturday Link woke up to eat breakfast with his mom like every other weekend, and for the day, he almost felt normal, too occupied with helping his mother around the house with chores and watching TV alongside her to remember the events of the previous morning. For a while Link almost felt like nothing had happened at school, and the feeling even carried all the way into Sunday.

Like most other Sunday mornings Link was up getting ready for church, and although Link didn't care for the length of it or how early it was, he'd always believed it were in some way important, and he didn't really mind sacrificing the few hours of sleep if it meant he wouldn't go to Hell or something like that.

It started off as normal as any other time he'd went, seeing the majority of Buies Creek's residents filling the pews wearing their nicest, if not repetitive garments like every other Sunday, settling in and greeting each other as they waited for the pastor to begin. He felt more grounded in that moment than he had in all the past few days combined, and the familiarity of the setting allowed him to relax, listening more attentively to what the pastor was saying than he usually would.

From the back of the room Link hung onto every word the pastor spoke, clapping along with the others in the room, and feeling almost cleansed from the self deprecation that had riddled his brain, why should he feel so bad about himself if God loved him? Link saw his mom giving him a weird look to his left, most likely confused as to why her son who'd never shown a large interest in church was suddenly participating so actively. He simply smiled at her and kept listening.

Toward the end of the morning the pastor took yet another pause, changing the subject, "Now I'd like everyone to flip to book three of the Old Testament, Leviticus, chapter eighteen, verse twenty-two."

Link scrunched his eyebrows in confusion, it sounded familiar, like something they'd reviewed before, but he couldn't quite remember it, nevertheless he searched through the rather large book in his lap to find it. Link dragged his finger down the worn page to find the verse. Before his eyes could settle on the words, he heard the pastor begin to speak again above him. In an instant, Link felt his streak of contentment shatter. Though the words were slightly faded from the age of the book, Link was able to read them clearly in his mind as the pastor did the same aloud. _"Leviticus 18:22, Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination."_

All of Link's conflicted thoughts returned to him, his mind finally confronting the nature of all his unhappiness in the past weeks. Link had never really thought of "lying" with someone, definitely not a guy for that matter, but as he knew, (and as he heard the pastor explain) the verse was just a general statement for how homosexuality was wrong, how it was an "abomination". Link never thought he was gay, not until recently had he realized that he actually liked someone in that sense, and quite frankly, Link hated it; he hated that Rhett had been the first person he actually liked, he hated that it wasn't Leslie like it should've been, or some other nice girl from the school, he hated that liking Rhett was a sin, he hated it all. He wanted to go back, to take back the moment where he'd met that stupid blonde, to Link, this was Rhett's fault, it was completely Rhett's fault that he was so nice and pretty and made Link into a huge fucking fag in a matter of days, it was Rhett's fault that he was gonna go to fucking hell. Link felt himself starting to panic as he tried to subtly hold his head in his hands, he wanted to get out of the room, wanted to remove himself from the hard wooden pew that was hurting his back almost as much as the pastor's words hurt his brain; he needed to get out. Never had Link left during church for any reason, not even to use the bathroom because he was always too shy to tell his mom he had to go, always too paranoid of judgement from the other goers if he stood abruptly, but he couldn't take it, and leaned over to his mom to tell her he needed to go.

After receiving a nod and yet another confused look from his mom, Link raised to his feet, awkwardly squeezing between the pew and the family next to his seat who gave him dirty looks as he walked directly in front of them. He apologized repeatedly until he finally reached the end, wasting no time as he swiftly moved in the direction of the bathroom.

When Link arrived it wasn't empty, two men occupied the room and Link nearly teared his eyes away from them so as not to stare, he felt gross, he felt perverted. Link inhaled deeply as he dipped into a stall, lowering the seat so he'd have somewhere to rest, as he sat down he heard the sink start, they'd both probably be gone soon, he'd be alone, he _needed_ to be alone.

His head dropped into his hands and his breathing was unsteady, he was going to cry, he was losing it. Link heard the door swing open but no steps followed it, the men were gone. Link rose to his feet again and opened the door of the stall, moving to the sink in front of it. Link washed his hands before he dipped his head into the sink as well, splashing the water onto his face to try to calm down. The memory of how he'd done the exact same thing just moments before he'd kissed Rhett came to his mind, and without hesitation, he stopped, he didn't want ti remember that, didn't want to remember how he ruined himself. Link dried his hands before quietly and quickly moving back into the main room and out the door, he knew no one was looking, all too focused on the pastor to care, but he still felt as though everyone noticed, that everyone knew what he was running from.

Link walked out onto the empty steps of the church's entrance, the humid North Carolina air feeling like it could somehow suffocate him even more than the suddenly tight dress shirt he was wearing. The sun was scolding the same way it had been when he first met Rhett, and Link physically shook his head trying to forget. The dark-haired boy sat down on the concrete steps that were no more comfortable than the hard pews inside, although he'd come out here to escape, it seemed like he never would.

Link stayed outside trying to rid his head of its conflictions, why did this all have to be so complicated? Why couldn't Link just not like Rhett? Why couldn't Rhett just be another boy at Link's school that he didn't care for? Why did Link have to be this way?

In the midst of his crisis Link heard the main door behind him open again and stood up to move away, the morning was over. Link kept his head down, looking off to the side as multiple families filed out of the large building until he heard a familiar voice somewhere ahead of him. "Link?"

Link looked up to see the smiling and yet confused face of his closest friend. "Leslie?"

Link watched as Leslie gave a look to a woman he assumed to be her mom that had exited with her, making her aware that she was gonna move away. Link heard her mom speak back to her, she too didn't have a country accent just like Leslie. "We're leaving in 5 minutes."

Leslie walked over toward Link. "Whatcha doing out here by yourself, stranger?"

Link feigned a quick smile, huffing air out from his nose as he responded. "Nothing."

Leslie paused as she made a weird look at Link. She moved closer to him and took his wrist in her hand, leading him down the steps away from the crowd of people exiting the building. Link was confused but didn't stop her. "Where're we-?"

Leslie cut him off as they arrived to a bench on the sidewalk. "Just here."

Leslie sat down and then gestured for Link to do the same, with an odd look, he complied.

Leslie sighed loudly before she began to speak again, "What's been going on Link?"

Link opened his mouth ready to deny that anything had changed with him, but when he took in the authentic concern on his friend's face he became ashamed that he'd ever made her so worried about him. Link relaxed and tensed at the same time, his shoulders dropping and then stiffing in place. He looked around to see them surrounded by fellow church-goers chatting outside the building just as they were; he would speak to her, but not here.

Link turned back to Leslie who'd been patiently waiting for his response, hesitating before speaking. "Can you come to my house?"

Leslie perked up, hopeful that she'd finally get answers from her closest friend. She rose to her feet before responding with a smile nearly as bright as her blue eyes, "I'll go ask my mom."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't share the views shown in this chapter, I'm an atheist and a big ol' queer, very sorry you all had to read that, I hated writing it, but nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> Thoughts?

**Author's Note:**

> I used to deliever newspaper, awful, horrible thing. This fic is a glorified coping mechanism.
> 
> check out mi dank Tumblr: [@ajax-junior](https://ajax-junior.tumblr.com/)


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